There are fours versions of Civilization II. The original version is simply called Sid Meier's Civlization II. Fantastic Worlds is an expansion for the original. Civilization II: Multiplayer Gold Edition is the original with all expansions. Civilization II: Test of Time is an enhanced remake and the latest version. A Summary of Civilization II Versions

The Civilization Chronicles box set includes Multiplayer Gold Edition and Test of Time.

Almost all the people who played Test of Time didn't like the new graphics, finding them too dark or ugly. This mod pack replaces those graphics with ones that, although without animated units, are much more colourful and detailed, taking advantage of the updated game engine.

Multiplayer types

'You must have Civ II Test of Time installed in order to install this update.'[edit]

The version of Civilization II Test of Time included with Civilization II does not correctly install in the registry, so the patch cannot detect the game. Update the game using the unofficial patch installer.

When trying to play a video, Test of Time crashes or goes to a blank screen[edit]

Civilization II: Test of Time needs an outdated codec for the in-game videos to work. The codec, Indeo 5, is included in the K-Lite Codec Pack, but is disabled by default, and needs to be registered. This codec was disabled as it could be a security risk. To register the codec, open the Start Menu. For 32bit versions of Windows, type in the Run box:

If you are running a 64-bit version of Windows, there is an unofficial patch that works with all 32-bit versions of Civilization II. There might be another source of this problem. When in the file "CITY.TXT" lists of predefined cities is too short. If you add more cities to the list problem should be solved.

When Civilization II came out, computers had a lot less power than the ones today, so the game was programmed to take as much of the CPU as possible. On modern computers this can cause problems, such as the fans constantly being on full while playing the game. There are a couple of unofficial patches to be installed after the other ones. This patch is for the original, Fantastic Worlds and Multiplayer Gold versions, and this patch is for Test of Time. Some anti virus programs may report that these patches are viruses, so you will need to add the .exe or the installation folder as an exception.

When saving a game in Test of Time, make sure to save the game in the correct sub folder. If you play Original, save in the Original folder. If you play ExtendedOriginal, save in the ExtendedOriginal folder. When playing a scenario, save in the scenario's folder. Saving in the main Test of Time folder will mean that the save game will not use the proper graphics when reloading.